Dune Part Two, Kill Bill Part Two, The Two Towers, some could argue Superman II. These sorts of "sequels" aren't really sequels at all but truly the second part of one longer movie. They face different challenges as they cannot really exist on their own without the first film in the same way something like The Dark Knight, Skyfall, or even Mama Mia Here We Go Again can. Those are films with their own beginnings, middles, and ends, films that tell one coherent and separate story, no matter how connected it is to what came before. Wicked For Good, shot continuously with the Wicked film, is just the continuing of the same story. Perhaps it is most analogous to Quintin Tarantino's revenge saga which was also made as one complete movie before being split in two parts. And perhaps one day we'll have a complete epic Wicked film that edits these two films together like we do with Kill Bill. But for now we have For Good all on it's own and while I do worry it would be almost impossible to just sit down and watch this one without having ever seen the first film, for me For Good sticks the landing and provides a very entertaining and moving finale for this saga.
We pick up soon after Elphaba defied gravity and leap right into the action. I think one of the biggest reasons for the success of these films has been the ambition of the film, to not just run through one plot point to the other but flesh-out the events, back stories, and fill each moment with real weight and pathos. Dividing Wicked into two has allowed this in a way that just wouldn't be possible in one film. We get to give the characters time to breath, the story time to play out, and the emotional core to come together. I really appreciated how the film helped massage some of the stage plays weaknesses this way. We get more of an understanding of plot points that are sort of glossed over, especially how it connects to the Wizard of Oz story. It all feels more organic than it had on stage.
I loved that the film chose not to centre Dorothy or her story. While the overlapping plot points are laid out Dorothy and her mission are always kept at arm's length (literally at one point through a crack in the door) so we remember this is Elphaba and Glinda's story. Instead of following the yellow brick road we explore how the Tin Man and Scarecrow come to be because they are the relevant characters here.
But overall what really makes it work is how much it sets out its metaphor. At its heart Wicked (as a novel, a stage musical, or as a film) is about the choices we make in the face of oppression, the way our different perspectives colour those choices, and how to find our road to integrity. What does it mean to be "good"? This film spends its time, and its two new songs, focusing on that question in a very effective and accessible way that isn't whitewashed or oversimplified. The metaphor of this take on the Oz stories is both wonderfully strong and clear while also being embedded in a very entertaining adventure.
And For Good is damn entertaining. Again the bold choice to make it two film, gave the film makers the chance to truly go all out and make spectacle. This is blockbuster film making with an air of the golden age of cinema. I do love a film that can be both crowd pleasing popcorn entertainment and tell a great story with a non-superficial moral. I was also impressed with how it manages the other big challenge of adapting this particular musical, one whose second act isn't quite as "strong" from a big musical number, big excitement point of view. It instead chooses to focus on the emotional core of the story and give us our climax with a beautiful melancholy moment instead of a grand triumph.
So for me Wicked does stick the landing. I know I'll never just watch For Good. But I'll likely never just watch Wicked Part One. They will always exist forever just as Wicked.
Wicked For Good
Starring: Cynthia Erivo, Ariana Grande, Jonathan Bailey, Ethan Slater, Bowen Yang, Marissa Bode, Michelle Yeoh, Jeff Goldblum, Colman Domingo
Director: Jon M. Chu
Writers: Winnie Holzman, Dana Fox
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